Blagojevich 'Stunned' After Being Convicted for 17 of 20 Corruption Charges (LATEST PHOTOS)

Rod Blagojevich, who served as the 40th Governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009, was found guilty on 17 of 20 counts in his corruption trial.

A jury convicted Blagojevich on 17 of 20 charges, including the one for trying to trade or sell the U.S. senate seat that was vacated by President Barack Obama.

As the verdicts were read aloud in court, one guilty following another, Blagojevich, who has always proclaimed his innocence, looked grimly at his wife, Patti, in the front row. By then, she was already slumped back in the arms of a relative, eyes closed, wiping away tears, according to the New York Times.

I frankly am stunned. There's not more to say other than we want to get home to our little girls and talk to them and explain things to them and try to sort things out, Blagojevich told to Reuters after the verdict.

The verdict appeared to be the end of Blagojevich's political career, which began its spiraling descent shortly after Obama was elected president in November 2008.

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich pauses during a brief speech to the media as he leaves the Dirksen Federal building after being convicted on 17 of 20 counts in his second corruption trial in ChicagoReuters

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich speaks to the media before he leaves the Dirksen Federal building after being convicted on 17 of 20 counts in his second corruption trial in ChicagoReuters

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich enters the Dirksen Federal building to hear the verdict of his second corruption trial in ChicagoReuters

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich looks at his wife Patti before they leave the Dirksen Federal building after being convicted on 17 of 20 counts in his second corruption trial in ChicagoReuters

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich and his wife Patti hold hands as they leave the Dirksen Federal building after he was convicted on 17 of 20 counts in his second corruption in ChicagoReuters

The jury foreman speaks out following a guilty verdict on former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in ChicagoReuters

The jury foreman speaks out on the trial, along with her fellow jurors, following a guilty verdict on former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in ChicagoReuters